Foreign Minister Dacic participated in a Annual Ministerial Meeting of Visegrad Group

Statement by First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of a Republic of Serbia Ivica Dacic during a Annual Meeting of a Foreign Ministers of a Visegrad Four and a Western Balkans Six, hold in Warsaw:

“Dear colleagues,

Allow me to start by thanking a horde for a glorious classification of this assembly in Warsaw, a city steeped in rich, yet also comfortless history, that serves as a reminder. Today we had an unusual event for a thorough-going sell of views between a members of a Visegrad Group and Western Balkan Ministers, and between a neighbours, on a stream domestic and mercantile topics, yet also on a opposite hurdles we are faced with.

Even yet outrageous swell has been finished given 2014, when we initial convened in this format, countless hurdles will distortion forward of us until we strech estimable settlement in a region. At a same time, hurdles within a European Union itself have been mushrooming, all inspiring a European prospects and, in such circumstances, a charge of EU advent becomes a some-more and some-more formidable one. Therefore, we are generally beholden to a members of a Visegrad Group for lending us their straightforward support in a European formation process, and we also design such support from all a neighbours, for they contingency know best how critical that is for a serve swell and fortitude of a whole region.

In a case, a routine of advent negotiations does not usually meant that we have to fastener with a all-encompassing reforms, yet also with a perfectionist routine of a discourse on a normalization of family with Pristina, whose formula will have an impact on a whole region. When it comes to a routine of commanding conditions, a bar that is ostensible to be fixed, a aim we are all essay for, is increasingly apropos a mobile target, liquid in a distance and form, therefore abating a certainty and faith in a final outcome – apropos an EU member. Unlike a call of a winning method of events after a tumble of a Berlin Wall, when we became EU Members, today’s resources are significantly different, a bar being lifted significantly higher.

Due to all a aforesaid, a adults are justifiably wondering if there unequivocally is a loyal idea for Serbia and a rest of a segment to turn members of a European family of nations, or a gigantic posing of conditions and loitering a opening of certain chapters is usually a tiny costume stealing a miss of readiness, if not an open conflict of a infancy of Member States to serve enlargement of a Union. We need to know what a European Union expects and what it wants us to do. Seeking vital calm from a segment that has not managed to turn significantly closer to a EU in a decades’ camber will not minister to a intensification of reforms and converging of stability. We need a vital support of a EU on all aspects.

I would like to take this event to echo once again that we are committed to EU membership. In a way, it turns out that these meetings are portion that purpose. Each of us could have brought a debate from a final time. Perhaps once we need to hear from we people from a EU either we are in foster of a EU, yourselves. The EU has many support in a Western Balkans for there is nowhere else a EU enjoys such a clever and plays an critical purpose as in a Balkans. Issues winning a tellurian stage present a problem here – Trump’s electoral feat in a United States, Brexit, probable change of supervision in France, a presence of a Renzi supervision after a referendum on a Constitution, a predestine of Angela Merkel after a elections subsequent year. These are a pivotal issues that need to be discussed during such meetings, not usually either Serbia or someone else will open a section and that one. The time when a countries will enter a EU is a matter of a domestic decision. This is a existence we have to confront.

Serbia has good honour for a team-work with a V4 countries. We trust that we have to concur even some-more intensively, generally during a domestic and mercantile level, since it is really critical for us in a Western Balkans. The doubt is since this tenure “the Western Balkans” is used in referring to us – it contingency have been coined by Croats so that they would not be in a Balkans. we cruise we should be looking for common interests and work on it. Our idea is to turn an EU Member, yet any of us has a possess inhabitant and state interests or agendas. Every time a former UK Prime Minister Cameron went to Brussels, he used to contend he was going to urge British interests. Should we be reduction Serbian than he was British? We are no partial of a Common Foreign and Security Policy of a EU and we have interests that do not always coincide with your interests. Once we turn a EU member, we will have to honour a positions. Let’s take a instance of Kosovo. The doubt for a EU is either a SAA was sealed with Kosovo in a same approach as with other countries, or is it a opposite SAA? Are member of Pristina designated with an asterisk and a footnote during meetings? Do we honour a neutrality status? You speak about them as if they were a country, and we do not determine with that. Has a SAA with Kosovo been validated in a inhabitant Parliaments of a Member States? No, it has not, it was usually validated in a European Parliament. How can we speak about Kosovo as a country? We are tolerant, yet we in a EU should hang to your possess decisions. Do we cruise that Serbia will accept Kosovo’s autonomy if this is not finished by all EU Member States? We are asked to align with a EU decisions on CFSP that are not in suitability with a inhabitant interests.

We have a discourse going on with Pristina on normalization, we are constructive, yet it does not meant that we determine that Kosovo is a state. Also, a vast series of adults of Kosovo already have a visa liberalisation by Serbia, since they are adults of Serbia and they have a passports. We have zero opposite that, we upheld all of a Western Balkans to obtain visa liberalisation. We have to solve a problems.

We in a segment have to embark on a highway of common interests, wakeful that this is a common space where we have to live subsequent to any other, and generally of a fact that it is usually joined that we have a probability to make swell and to be rival as a marketplace and an investment destination. Consolidation of a economies is a pivotal to a progress. We have to seize a time that a EU will use for a possess converging in sequence to make as most swell as probable in a routine of reforms and grasp a top probable turn of European standards in all areas.

On this occasion, we would like to stress that we are opposite ETIAS complement that a EU wants to deliver for a adults to compensate a price to enter a EU. There is no judicious reason behind it. If an EU entrance price is charged, we should cruise commanding a counter-measure, formed on a element of reciprocity, and we will allege such a proposal. How is it probable that such a step is taken unilaterally? Is it judicious that a nationals compensate for entrance into a EU, and that a adults of EU Member States ride to Serbia but a fee? We need to honour any other and work in a common interest.

Ladies and gentlemen,

After a 3 summits on a Western Balkans, hold in Berlin, Vienna and Paris, we should not be forgetful a annual meetings of a whole Central European segment with a People’s Republic of China as well, we are creation swell on infrastructural projects, team-work between tiny and medium-sized enterprises, mercantile chambers.

It is with impatience that we wait a Western Balkans Fund, that came into existence with a good support of a International Visegrad Fund, to turn entirely operational, and we wish to surprise we that we are nearby a finish of a resolution routine of this Agreement. We are operative intensively on a investiture of a Regional Youth Cooperation Office of a Western Balkans, that will move to life one of a initial ideas of a Prime Ministers of Serbia and Albania, within a “Berlin Process”. Both newly-established informal institutions will be seated in Tirana. Both projects will move a substantial procedure in a team-work between a polite society, NGOs, girl and experts from opposite areas, so tangibly contributing to a improved livelihoods of all a adults in a region, and to informal reconciliation.

Nowadays, we once again hear about a probability of entering into a Agreement on a Establishment of a Transport Community. As we know really well, a chair of a Secretariat of a South East Europe Transport Observatory (SEETO) has been successfully handling in Belgrade for some-more than 10 years now, and it is logically approaching that it will be remade into a chair of a Transport Community Secretariat. That would secure a follow-up to a already institutionalized team-work and existent structure. Belgrade is also an critical informal ride hub, permitted from a aspects of highway and rail transport, and quite from a aspect of atmosphere ride magnitude and destinations. Therefore, dear colleagues from a region, greatfully support us this time round, in a same approach Serbia upheld we – Tirana for a chair of a aforementioned dual informal organizations, Skopje for a chair of MARRI, Sarajevo for a chair of a Regional Cooperation Council, Danilovgrad for a chair of ReSPA. In this manner, an estimable illustration for seats of informal organizations would be ensured and a segment would uncover that it is mature and able of operative in a possess interest.

Serbia has good modernized in a routine of remodel of multitude as a whole. However, we have a sense that a advent routine is not surpassing as envisaged, since it is mostly dynamic by a swell finished in a Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. Serbia is resolutely committed to a discourse on normalization, in sequence to solve a issues of regard to adults and secure fortitude that is still a relations idea in Kosovo and Metohija. Finally, we wish to ask we to support us in a efforts to open, in December, 3 negotiating chapters (5, 25 and 26), that would give a absolute procedure to a European perspective.